Taylor Swift broke Spotify. His tenth album, Midnightswhich marks the American singer’s gradual return to her pop inclinations, caused blackouts in several countries on the Swedish streaming service when it was released at midnight Thursday night into Friday.
In the United States, France and the United Kingdom, for example, fans of the star had to wait patiently to discover this new opus on the streaming platform. Many angry Swiftties have posted screenshots displaying the error message: “Something is wrong. Try again.” A technical problem that was often solved within the hour.
Listening record broken
Highly anticipated, the album was then a dazzling success on the platform. “Taylor Swift has broken the record for the most streamed album in a single day,” Spotify announced Friday afternoon on Twitter.
Fans have discovered 13 songs entirely centered around the fateful hour when the clock strikes twelve. “Midnights” is “the story of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life,” Taylor Swift explained on Twitter, and all of the tracks “form a complete picture of the intensity of that crazy, mystical hour.”
With this new disc, the 32-year-old singer-songwriter abandons the indie-folk vein of her two previous albums written during the pandemic, “evermore” and “folklore” – rewarded with the title of best album of the year at the Grammys Awards 2021.
Far from the acoustic charm of these works of confinement, the melodies of Midnights pour more into electro-pop, with the use of synths, rhythms inspired by dubstep and effects capable of giving an androgynous side to the voice of the singer, who after starting out in country has become a major star pop.
Duet with Lana Del Rey
The tone of the album, where pop diva Lana Del Rey lends her suave voice for a duet on Snow on The Beach, remains voluntarily stripped. Taylor Swift shares her nocturnal ruminations, her reflections on the inexorably advancing age and on the implications of love, without ever being unleashed on the twelve strokes of midnight.
This new opus is generally hailed by the Anglo-Saxon press. The British daily The Guardian thus underlines the “calm, serene and mature” side of a disc “filled with fantastic songs”.
However, some critics regret the absence of a leading and catchy title. “It is difficult to identify a lightning hit on Swift’s hushed third album”, laments the newspaper The Independent.
True to form, Taylor Swift has also reserved some surprises for her fans. “Midnights” exists online in an extended version, titled 3 a.m. Editionwith seven additional titles.
SPOTIFY